US doctor and girlfriend charged with drug rapes

A doctor who appeared on a dating show has been charged with drugging and sexually assaulting two women with his girlfriend – and police suspect there may be many more victims.

Grant W Robicheaux, a 38-year-old orthopaedic surgeon in California’s Newport Beach, was arrested with 31-year-old Cerissa Laura Riley on 12 September and charged with crimes including rape by use of drugs and oral copulation by anaesthesia.

In their investigation into the pair, police say they found “thousands and thousands” of videos, some including Riley, on Robicheaux’s phone.

They show women who “appear to be highly intoxicated beyond the ability to consent or resist” and are “barely responsive to the defendant’s sexual advances”, Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas said.

As well as working as a doctor for nearly a decade, Robicheaux featured in a now-cancelled TV show called “Online Dating Rituals of the American Male” on an episode called “Three’s A Crowd”.

Clips from the episode were not included on the show’s website on Wednesday morning.

“We believe the defendants used their good looks and charm to lower the inhibitions of their potential prey,” Mr Rackauckas said.

“We tend to trust doctors who take an oath to do no harm. The second defendant, being a female, is key. A woman purporting to be his girlfriend clearly played a significant role in disarming the victims, making them feel comfortable and safe.”

Detailing the crimes they have been charged with, prosecutors say the couple met a woman in a Newport Beach restaurant in April 2016.

They took her to a party then to Robicheaux’s apartment, giving her drugs and sexually assaulting her while she was incapable of resisting.

The woman called police the next day and a forensic exam found multiple controlled substances.

In another incident in October 2016, the pair allegedly drank alcohol with another woman at a Newport Beach bar until she was unconscious, took her to Robicheaux’s apartment and sexually assaulted her.

The victim woke up and screamed for help until a neighbour called police and an investigation was launched.

Other charges suggest that large amounts of drugs were found at the doctor’s home, as well as illegal firearms including assault rifles.

Police are asking others who have been assaulted by the pair to speak out.

More from US

They highlight that the defendants may have travelled together to festivals including Burning Man, Dirtybird Campout and Splash House in Palm Springs.

Robicheaux and Riley were released on $100,000 bail but have not been reached for comment.